Eastern Kentucky University Encompass Curriculum and Instruction Faculty and Staff Curriculum and Instruction Scholarship June 2004 Spiders in African Children's Stories Dorothy N. Bowen Eastern Kentucky University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://encompass.eku.edu/ci_fsresearch Part of the Education Commons, and the Library and Information Science Commons Recommended Citation Bowen, Dorothy N., "Spiders in African Children's Stories" (2004). Curriculum and Instruction Faculty and Staff Scholarship. Paper 21. http://encompass.eku.edu/ci_fsresearch/21 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Curriculum and Instruction at Encompass. It has been accepted for inclusion in Curriculum and Instruction Faculty and Staff choS larship by an authorized administrator of Encompass. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Spiders in African Children's Stories by Dorothy Bowen The first literature that many American chil- in order to receive the stories. "The price of my dren come into contact with consists of Mother stories is that you bring me Osebo the leopard Goose rhymes. One of the very familiar ones is of-the-terrible-teeth, Mmboro the hornet who- "Little Miss Muffet." stings-like-fire, and Mmoatia the Little Miss Muffet sat on a fairy whom-men-never-see," he tuffet, said. Trickster that he was, Eating her curds and whey; Anansi managed to trick Ose- When along came a spider, bo, Mmboro, and Mmoatia, who sat down beside her, and he was able to take them And frightened Miss Muf- all to the Sky God. He received fet away. the golden box of stories in ex- The child who hears this change. When he opened the rhyme and sees one or more box, the stories "scattered to of the many illustrations that the corners of the world." accompany it in children's collec- Duane, in her beautifully illus- tions soon will learn that a spider trated African Myths and Legends is probably not the most desirable of bugs. In fact, (1998), gives a slightly different slant on this story he or she probably will become a bit fearful of which she attributes to the Ashanti people. In her the eight-legged creature that was so unkind to telling of how Anansi obtained the stories, she Miss Muffet. This is quite a different picture of a writes that his task involved capturing the hor- spider from the one that we find in traditional nets, the leopard, and Onini the python; and African stories where Anansi the Spider, one of Anansi is not a Spider Man, but rather had been the most outstanding characters in African fables, turned into a small spider as punishment for kill- is portrayed as a very clever trickster who can ing the king's magnificent ram. In Aardema's fool animals many times his size. Most of these (1997) retelling of the same story, the price is a stories come from culture groups in west Africa, live python, a real fairy, and forty-seven sting- although there are some from other parts of the ing hornets. African continent as well. The Krachi people have a story that explains why McDermott writes in the prologue to his Anansi's name was changed from Anyankon to Caldecott-winning book Anansi the Spider (1972), Anansi by Wulbari, their god. It seems that Anansi "This funny fellow is a rogue, a wise and loveable asked to borrow a corn cob from Wulbari, promis- trickster. He is a shrewd and cunning figure who ing to turn it into a hundred slaves. He started out triumphs over larger foes. An animal with hu- on a journey, first tricking a village chief into think- man qualities, Anansi is a mischief maker. He ing that he was at fault for the disappearance of his tumbles into many troubles." corn cob and received from him a whole basket of Arkhurst notes, "He is a favorite person in the corn. He next traded the corn for a chicken, which stories of West Africa. Maybe it is because he is he killed while staying in the home of a second just like a naughty little boy, who is full of mis- village chief, and then tricked the chief into think- chief and yet loved by everyone. Maybe it is be- ing he was responsible for the chicken's death. Fear- cause he is like some people all of us know, and ful of the wrath of Wulbari, the chief begged for Dorothy N. maybe it is because he is a little like you and me- forgiveness and gave Anansi ten of their best sheep. Bowen, Ph.D., isa As Anansi continued on his journey, he met a fu- Professor of or at least a tiny part of us sometimes" (1964, 3). Curriculum and Caldecott winner Gail Haley tells how this all neral party. He offered to assist them in carrying Instruction began in her book A Story, A Story (1970). It seems the corpse stating, "I would be only too delighted (Library Science) that there was once a time when there were no to help you in any way. Here, take my sheep and at Eastern stories on earth. The Sky God, Nyame, owned all lead them to your village and I will follow behind Kentucky on my shoulders." He then fell be- University In of the stories and kept them in a golden box next with the body Richmond, KY. to his royal stool. Anansi the Spider Man spun a hind the party, ending up at yet another chiefs house, Phone: 859-622- web and went to the sky to buy the stories from telling him that he has with him the favorite son of 2164; FAX: 859- Nyame. He was given a series of tasks to perform Wulbari who was very weary and needed a bed for 622-2004 VOLUMNUBR1/UN043 XX VOLUME XX, NUMBER IO/JUNE 2004 39 the night. He was granted a place for the corpse As clever as he was, however, Marsh (1997) tells and, through even more devious means, tricked a us a story about how his attempt to find one too third chief into thinking that he was responsible many free lunches backfired on him. It seems that for the death of Wulbari's son. He struck a bargain there was a mean queen named Queen Five, who with the chief, telling him that he would persuade hated her name, so she put a spell on the word Wulbari that it was a terrible accident, if he replaced "Five." Anyone who said it would fall down dead. them with a hundred of the best young men of the Anansi just happened to hear Queen Five chant village. Anansi returned to Wulbari with the re- her magic words, "Five, say-it-and-fall-down- port, "Do you not remember giving me that single dead." He thought he could make this work to corn cob? Now you have a hundred excellent slaves his advantage and tricked Rabbit and Duck into in exchange. They are yours to keep and I have kept saying the word and becoming his dinner. How- my promise..." Wulbari smiled broadly and was so ever, Pig refused to say the word, causing Anansi pleased with Anansi that he confirmed his appoint- to become so angry that he yelled out the word ment as Chief of his Host there and then, and or- for him. When he said "five," the trickster fell dered him to change his name from Anyankon to down dead. That's the last of the Anansi stories. Anansi, which is the name he has kept to the present These are just a few of the Anansi tales that day (Duane 1998, 53-57). you can share with your students who will be Arkhurst (1964) helps us to understand why delighted with his clever antics and will think of Anansi is thin and bald. It seems that he did not many ways to-act them out in the classroom. start out that way, but at first was big and round Marsh's book A Treasury of Trickster Tales (1997) and loved to eat, but the lazy spider did not want offers a number of creative storytelling methods to work for his food. In his greed to get free food appropriate with these tales, such as using sign from more than one place, he had his sons pull language, paper folding, and paper-cutting. This ropes tied around his waist to inform him when is a wonderful way to bring a piece of the many the food was cooked, so he was able to stay be- rich African cultures into your classroom. tween two villages, ready to go in either direc- tion. However, it so happened that the food was References ready at exactly the same time in both villages Aardema, Verna. Anansi Does the Impossible An Ashanti Tale and both sons pulled with equal strength from Illus. by Lisa Desimini. Atheneum Books for Young Read- two directions, causing the ropes to squeeze ers, 1997. tighter and tighter and his waist to grow thinner Arkhurst, Joyce Cooper. Th1e Adventures of Spider West Afri- and thinner. He then had a big head, a big body, can Folk Tales. Illus. by Jerry Pinkney. Little, Brown, 1964. Berry, James. First Palm Trees: An Anancy Spiderman Story. and a tiny waist in between. IMlus. by Greg Couch. New York. Simon & Schuster, 1997. Anansi's greedy appetite, along with his laziness, Cummings, Pat. Anansi and the Lizard: A West African Tale also contributed to his baldness, for one day he could H.